NFL Beginner's Guide to Football NFL Network Beginner's Guide to Football One 11-man team has possession of the football. It is called the offense and it tries to advance the ball down the field-by running with the ball or throwing it - and score points by crossing the goal line and getting into an area called the end zone. The other team (also with 11 players) is called the defense. It tries to stop the offensive team and make it give up possession of the ball. If the team with the ball does score or is forced to give up possession, the offensive and defensive teams switch roles (the offensive team goes on defense and the defensive team goes on offense). And so on, back and forth, until all four quarters of the game have been played. In order to make it easier to coordinate the information in this digest, the topics discussed generally follow the order of the rule book. THE FIELD The field measures 100 yards long and 53 yards wide. Little white markings on the field called yard markers help the players, officials, and the fans keep track of the ball. Probably the most important part of the field is the end zone. It's an additional 10 yards on each end of the field.

This is where the points add up! When the offense - the team with possession of the ball-gets the ball into the opponent's end zone, they score points. TIMING Games are divided into four 15-minute quarters, separated by a 12-minute break at halftime. There are also 2-minute breaks at the end of the first and third quarters as teams change ends of the field after every 15 minutes of play. At the end of the first and third quarters, the team with the ball retains possession heading into the following quarter. That is not the case before halftime. The second half starts with a kickoff in the same way as the game began in the first quarter. Each offensive team has 40 seconds from the end of a given play until they must snap of the ball for the start of the next play, otherwise they will be penalized. The clock stops at the end of incomplete passing plays, when a player goes out of bounds, or when a penalty is called. The clock starts again when the ball is re-spotted by an official. If a game is tied at the end of regulation, a 15-minute overtime period will be played.

In the NFL, this is sudden death and the first team to score wins. Possession is determined before the period begins by a coin toss. THE PLAYERS Each team has 3 separate units: the offense (see section below), those players who are on the field when the team has possession of the ball; the defense (see section below), players who line up to stop the other team's offense; and special teams that only come in on kicking situations (punts, field goals, and kickoffs). Only 11 players are on the field from one team at any one time. To see how the players line up click here THE KICKOFF A game starts with the kickoff. The ball is placed on a kicking tee at the defense's 30-yard line, and a special kicker (a "placekicker") kicks the ball to the offense A kick return man from the offense will try to catch the ball and advance it by running. Where he is stopped is the point from which the offense will begin its drive, or series of offensive plays.

When a kickoff is caught in the offense's own end zone, the kick returner can either run the ball out of the end zone, or kneel in the end zone to signal a touchback - a sign to stop the play. The ball is then placed on the 20-yard line, where the offense begins play. FIRST DOWN All progress in a football game is measured in yards. The offensive team tries to get as much "yardage" as it can to try and move closer to the opponent's end zone. Each time the offense gets the ball, it has four downs, or chances, in which to gain 10 yards. If the offensive team successfully moves the ball 10 or more yards, it earns a first down, and another set of four downs. If the offense fails to gain 10 yards, it loses possession of the ball. The defense tries to prevent the offense not only from scoring, but also from gaining the 10 yards needed for a first down. If the offense reaches fourth down, it usually punts the ball (kicks it away). This forces the other team to begin its drive further down the field. MOVING THE BALL - The Run and the Pass A play begins with the snap.

At the line of scrimmage (the position on the field where the play begins), the quarterback loudly calls out a play in code and the player in front of him, the center, passes, or snaps the ball under his legs to the quarterback. From there, the quarterback can either throw the ball, hand it off, or run with it. THE RUN There are two main ways for the offense to advance the ball. The first is called a run. This occurs when the quarterback hands the ball off to a running back, who then tries to gain as many yards as possible by eluding defensive players. The quarterback is also allowed to run with the ball. THE PASS The other alternative to running the ball is to throw it. Or as they say in football, pass it! Usually, the quarterback does the passing, though there are times when another player may pass the ball to confuse the defense. Actually, anyone on the offensive team is allowed to pass the ball as long as the pass is thrown from behind the line of scrimmage. A pass is complete if the ball is caught by another offensive player, usually the "wide receiver" or "tight end." If the ball hits the ground before someone catches it, it is called an incomplete pass.

THE TACKLE The defense prevents the offense from advancing the ball by bringing the ball carrier to the ground. A player is tackled when one or both of his knees touch the ground. The play is then over. A play also ends when a player runs out of bounds. SCORING The object of the game is to score the most points. There are four ways to score points in football. TOUCHDOWN = 6 POINTS A touchdown is the biggest single score in a football game. It is worth six points, and it allows the scoring team an opportunity to attempt to get an extra point. To score a touchdown, the ball must be carried across the goal line into the end zone, caught in the end zone, or a fumble recovered in the end zone, or an untouched kickoff recovered in the end zone by the kicking team. EXTRA POINT and the TWO-POINT CONVERSION = 1 or 2 POINTS Immediately following a touchdown, the ball is placed at the opponent's two-yard line, where the offense has two options. Usually the offense will kick an extra point, also called the point after touchdown, conversion, or PAT. If the offense successfully kicks the ball through the goal posts, it earns one point.

The offense can also score two points by running or throwing the ball into the end zone in the same manner as you would score a touchdown. Since going for two points is more difficult than kicking an extra point, the offense generally chooses to kick the extra point. FIELD GOAL = 3 POINTS If the offense cannot score a touchdown, it may try to kick a field goal. Field goals are worth three points and often are the deciding plays in the last seconds of close games. They can be attempted from anywhere on the field on any down, but generally are kicked from inside the defense's 45-yard line on fourth down. For a field goal to be "good", the placekicker (or field goal kicker) must kick the ball through the goal-post uprights and over the crossbar. The defense tries to block the kick and stop the ball from reaching the goal post. SAFETY = 2 POINTS The safety is worth two points. A safety occurs when the offensive ball carrier is tackled behind his own goal line.

TURNOVERS While trying to advance the football to the end zone, the offense may accidentally turn the ball over to the defense in one of two ways: THE FUMBLE When the ball carrier or passer drops the ball, that's a fumble. Any player on the field can recover the ball by diving on it or he can run with it. The team that recovers a fumble either gets-or retains-possession of the ball. THE INTERCEPTION An aggressive defense can regain possession of the ball by catching (intercepting) passes meant for players on the other team. Both fumble recoveries and interceptions can be run back into the end zone for touchdowns. THE TWO SIDES OF THE BALL THE OFFENSE Whichever team has possession of the ball is the offense. While only the quarterback, the wide receivers and tight ends, and the running backs can legally handle the ball, it is the quarterback who is the leader of the team and the playmaker. In fact, he's a man of many talents - he not only throws the ball, he outlines each play to his team. THE OFFENSIVE PLAYERS The quarterback ("QB") passes or hands off the ball. The center snaps the ball to the QB and blocks the defense.

2 guards and 2 tackles keep the defense at bay. 2/4 wide receivers catch the ball thrown by the QB. 1 or 2 running backs take the ball and run with it. 1 or 2 tight ends block the defense and can also catches passes. THE DEFENSE The job of the defense is to stop the offense. The 11 men on the defensive team all work together to keep the offense from advancing toward the defense's end zone. THE DEFENSIVE PLAYERS Various Methods of Scoring in Football NFL Expert By James Alder • The biggest goal for an offense every time they take possession of the ball is to score a touchdown. To score a touchdown, a player must carry the ball across the opposition's goal line, or catch a pass in the end zone. Once the ball crosses the plane of the goal line while it is in a player's possession, it is scored a touchdown. A touchdown is worth six points. • The team scoring a touchdown is given the bonus of trying to add one or two more points. These are called extra point conversion attempts.

• If a team elects to go for two extra points , they will line up at the two-yard line and make one attempt at either running or passing the ball into the end zone. If they make it, they are awarded two points. If they don't, they get no extra points. • They can also elect to go for just one extra point by kicking the ball through the goal posts while snapping it from the two-yard line. • Another way for a team to score is by kicking a field goal. When a team finds themselves in a fourth-down situation, many times they will attempt to kick a field goal if they feel they are close enough for their kicker to kick the football between the upright bars of the goal post in the opponent's end zone . A field goal is worth three points. • A team can also pick up two points by tackling an opponent possessing the ball in his own end zone. This is called a safety! •Perhaps the rarest way to score in football is on the little-used fair-catch kick. If a team fair catches a punt from the other team, they have the option of attempting a field goal on a free kick on the very next play from the spot the punt is fielded.

The ball is kicked off the ground with the aid of a holder, and is worth three points just like a regular field goal. The down is not timed. To summarize: BBC Sport - American Football - NFL in a nutshell NFL in a nutshell Guide to the basics of American football BASICS 11 players from each team on field Four 15min quarters Three time-outs per half for each team 12min half-time 15min sudden-death overtime if scores are tied The purpose of the game is to move the ball towards, and ultimately into, the opposition's end zone. This is achieved by either running with the ball until tackled, or throwing the ball downfield to a team-mate. DOWNS Downs are the most fundamental, and confusing, part of the NFL rulebook. The attacking team, or offence, needs to move the ball forward in chunks of at least 10 yards, which is why the pitch has yardage markings. They have four chances, or downs, to gain those 10 yards. When the ball has advanced that far anotherfirst down is earned, with four more chances to go a further 10 yards.

If the offensive team fails to move 10 yards within four downs, possession is surrendered, although the ball is usually kicked, or punted, to the defending team on fourth down. While most scoring comes from near the defending team's end zone, a touchdown can be scored from anywhere on the field, and on any down. PLAYS These are the complicated movements involving all 11 players teams use to move the ball downfield. Plays are called by the head coach or quarterback, who is the attacking lynchpin of any team. While the term usually refers to attacking teams, defending teams also use set plays to stop their opponents' forward movement. The offensive team has 30 seconds to get the ball in play or kick a field goal. SCORING Touchdown (six points) A touchdown is scored when a team crosses the opposition's goal line with the ball, or catches or collects the ball in the end zone. Field goal (three points) These are usually attempted on fourth down if the kicker is close enough to the end zone to kick the ball through the posts, or uprights. Extra point (one or two points) A point is earned by kicking the ball through the uprights after a touchdown (similar to a rugby conversion).

Two points are earned by taking the ball into the end zone again. Safety (two points) Awarded to the defensive team when a member of the offensive team is tackled with the ball in his own end zone. POSITIONS Although there are only 11 players from each side on the field at any one time, an American football team is made up of 45 players, ranging in size, speed and their roles within the team. The offence A team's attacking players who attempt to move the ball forward and score touchdowns. The key man is the quarterback. On the quarterback's signal, the centre snaps the ball back between his legs to the QB (similar to rugby league's play-the-ball). A typical offensive line-up The quarterback can then either run with the ball, hand it to a running back, or pass it downfield to one of his receivers. 1 & 11 Wide receivers 9 Fullback 10 Running back The plays used by the quarterback can either be pre-arranged or improvised to take advantage of the game's changing shape. The defence The role of the defence is to stop the other team from scoring by tackling the ball-carrier, intercepting passes or causing fumbles.

A '3-4' defensive set-up The defence is made up of big, powerful players trying to stop the other team from running the ball, and fast, athletic players trying to prevent the quarterback's passes from reaching his receivers. The defence's power players also attempt to tackle, or sack, the quarterback before he has thrown the ball, while any defender can cause a fumble by knocking the ball from a ball-carrier's grasp. 1 & 3 - Cornerbacks 4, 5, 6, 7 - Linebackers 8 - Strong safety 10 - Nose, or defensive, tackle Special teams Responsible for all plays involving kicks or punts. Special teams play a small but vital role. They come onto the field to execute field goal or extra point attempts, and when the team wants to punt the ball downfield on fourth down. They are also responsible for trying to block the opposition's kicks and punts, as well as attempting to return them as far as possible in the other direction. Bookmark with: Breaking down an average NFL game.

| Sports on Earth Comments (0) The average NFL game in 2013 has lasted 3 hours, 10 minutes and 34 seconds and ended in a 29.0-17.8 score. (Getty Images) You're sitting down for a Sunday slate of NFL games. You crack open your light beer (because NFL Sunday commercials have brainwashed you into believing light beer is the only phylum of beer) and take a bite of partially stale potato chips and immediately regret your decision not to go to the grocery store since it's Sunday and, dammit, Sunday is your day. You turn on your quite large TV whose specs you recite to any first-time viewer and glorious football is engaged. Now if I told you that NFL game you're watching would be a perfectly average NFL game, would you keep watching it? Do you even know what an average NFL game looks like? Maybe we can't capture everything, but using Advanced NFL Stats' data (except when otherwise noted), allow me to take you on a tour of a perfectly average 2013 NFL game (all data is through Week 11, a total of 162 games). Please maintain an average level of excitement while reading.

* * * The game starts with the first of 10.5 kickoffs. My apologies in advance if you like returns, because 5.7 of those kickoffs will be touchbacks. Of the plays you will see this afternoon, there will be 80.5 passes and 53.1 runs, so I hope you enjoy passing. From those 80.5 passes, 5.4 will result in sacks, all of which will be immediately followed by a very large man dancing as if he were a much smaller man. The remaining 30.9 plays will be kickoffs, punts, field-goal attempts or kneel-downs. There will be 133.6 "regular" plays (runs or passes). Just fewer than seven percent will be for 20 yards or more (about nine plays), meaning a vast majority of plays will be conveniently confined to the width of the play-by-play camera angle.

Sixty-five percent -- or 87.9 plays -- of runs or passes will gain yards; 11.1 runs (21 percent) will be stuffed for no gain or a loss; 45.9 (57 percent) pass attempts will gain yards and 22.8 (a little more than 28 percent) will be for longer than 10 yards. There will be a total of 24.7 possessions, or about 12 per team and 3.2 of them (13 percent) will end in turnovers. There will be 2.3 fumbles, but only 1.2 of those fumbles (50.7 percent) will be lost (because fumbles are recovered randomly, as these numbers demonstrate). Two interceptions will be thrown. There will be 3.1 passing touchdowns and 1.6 rushing touchdowns. You can expect a defensive touchdown every other game. There will be 10.3 punts -- 2.5 of them will be fair caught -- and of the 4.1 field-goal attempts, 3.6 (87 percent) will be made. The game will be stopped. A lot.

There will be 8.9 penalties and 1.6 reviews and about 55 percent will come from the replay booth. Of the reviews triggered by the replay booth, 58 percent will be upheld. Coach's challenges will be more successful, as just less than half will be upheld. These reviews will take a total of 3 minutes and 30 seconds, or 2:08 per review (this data comes from my own timing of 48 reviews this year). The final score will be 29.0 to 17.8. Via Pro Football Reference 's game length data, all this will take 3 hours, 10 minutes and 34 seconds, 100 percent of which you will never get back. * * * OK, that was a lot of numbers. Obviously no game unfolds precisely that way. To demonstrate, despite the winning team's average score of 29 points, that is a pretty rare point total; according to Pro Football Reference , only 200 teams in NFL history (out of 14,775 games) have scored exactly 29 points in a game, whereas 28 points have been scored almost five times as often.

So while this can't be taken too literally, there are some lessons to be learned: The average football game is actually longer than the average baseball game. According to The Boston Globe , baseball games average 2 hours, 57 minutes and 33 seconds. This isn't to suggest baseball is inherently more exciting. But one of the contemporary knocks against baseball is its games take too long. It's curious that few complain about NFL game lengths, considering they take 13 minutes longer, more time than the 11 total minutes of actual game play during an NFL game . In other words, you could fit all the action of an average NFL game into the spare time after an average baseball game ends. Big plays happen much less frequently than we might think. Let's say a "big play" is a turnover, sack, pass/run of 20 yards or more or a touchdown (sorry, but field goals -- with their 87 percent success rate -- are typically uneventful). Eliminating double-counting, there are 20.8 such plays per game. But we watch 143.4 other plays.

Obviously some of those plays could be exciting as well (deep incomplete passes, a LeSean McCoy run with nine jukes that goes for two yards, etc.) but how many? Even when the game is actually being played, there's a lot of filler before you get to the meat. I'm all for getting the calls right, but how many reviews are too many? Reviews take a while. There's no reason why it should take two minutes to watch a couple of replays. They're often a time-consuming process because the referee has to go to the coach and find out what he's challenging, then go to the booth, then walk to the field and announce his decision (which can take an insanely long time, like this 44-second explanation from Gene Steratore). Perhaps a clue as to why the NFL has little interest in making reviews more swiftly: About half the time (48 percent) networks use them to break for commercials. Reviews give networks more flexibility in terms of when to go to commercials, or catch up on their slots after (or during) a long drive. The average NFL game isn't that close. The average point differential is 11.2 points, though the median offers a more competitive eight-point margin of victory.

While eight points would still be one score, the fact that the average is 3.2 points higher than the median suggests that there are a fair number of blowouts. Almost half of all NFL games (48 percent) finish as two-score games (a nine-point differential or greater) and just about one out of every four games (24 percent) were three-score games (a 17-point differential or greater). There's a lot more to be said on this topic, but a quarter of all games being total blowouts doesn't seem like a selling point for a league so focused on parity. By the numbers, there's a lot to suggest that the NFL's product isn't all that great. But the league has done a brilliant job of hiding its average and subpar games. TV contracts require networks to show the local team, implicitly guaranteeing a majority of viewers will care about a game regardless of whether it's a good one or not. Late afternoon and prime-time assignments are made to showcase the very best matchups of the week. The Redzone Channel(s) allow you to see only the most exciting moments. Paradoxically, it doesn't really matter what the average NFL game looks like, because so few people actually watch one.

And that's probably a good thing. scoring - How does one get 5 points in a football game? - Sports Stack Exchange How does one get 5 points in a football game? During today's Niners vs Seahawks game, the score by the end of the first half was 0-5. What I don't understand is how the Seahawks scored 5 points. My understanding of football is : 6 points for a touchdown 1 point for following field goal 2 points for following conversion 3 points for regular field goal In no way can I see a possibility where 5 points would be the combination of any of above said criteria. Am I thinking something wrong? How is it possible to have 5 points only? up vote 26 down vote accepted You can also get 2 points for a safety , when the offensive team commits an infraction or is tackled in their own end zone. In addition to scoring 2 points, the defending team also receives the ball via a free kick. They are rare, but there have already been a few this season.

So these are the possible ways to score: Touchdown - 6 points Two Point Conversion* (following a touchdown) - 2 points Safety - 2 points Point After Touchdown* (field goal-style kick) - 1 point (NCAA, and NFL as of 2015) Blocked extra point try (or any turnover on a PAT or 2-point conversion) is run back - 2 points for defense. Extra point attempt that results in a safety for either side - 1 point In the game you are referencing, there was a safety and then a field goal, resulting in a 5 point score for Seattle. *A Two Point Conversion or a Point After Touchdown can only be attempted immediately following a scored touchdown. The team must choose to attempt one or the other. 1 The only score that is mathematically impossible in American football is 1. – Ben Miller Sep 17 '13 at 15:16 2 @BenMiller: That's only impossible in the NFL; NCAA football allows a score of 1 in a very rare case, left as an exercise to the reader.

– Michael Myers♦ Sep 17 '13 at 16:02 3 Also, one-point safeties are possible in the NFL, but there hasn't been one since 1940 (according to this blog article: blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2013/01/04/… ). But the NFL rulebook definitely allows for it (Section 3 Article 2 (d)) – Leatherwing Sep 17 '13 at 18:47 1 @Leatherwing: That's interesting in light of Article 2 (c), which prevents the defense from e.g. intercepting a pass and retreating into the end zone. The WSJ article says that the only way would be to bat the ball out of the end zone without taking possession, but it's also possible, according to Section 3 Article 3 Item 4(a), for a defensive penalty to result in a one-point safety. I'm not sure how that could happen to a team without possession. – Michael Myers♦ Sep 17 '13 at 19:36 1 @MichaelMyers Very interesting.

So it looks like in NCAA the one-point safety could theoretically be scored by either side. However, in NFL, the play is dead as soon as the defense takes possession, so it is impossible for the defense to score a one-point safety, and therefore impossible to get a score of 1. – Ben Miller Sep 18 '13 at 13:45 american football - History of NFL scoring format - Sports Stack Exchange History of NFL scoring format up vote 7 down vote favorite 1 Can anyone tell me why the NFL uses the current scoring format of 6 points plus extra point for a touchdown, 3 points for a field goal, 2 points for a safety. Is there a history or story behind why they picked this format? Was a different format ever used? Why was this format chosen over a 5-2-1 format for example? I dont know if this question has a good answer or not but I couldnt find anything definitive on this in my research. Does anyone else know something I dont? Based on The Anatomy of a Game . The current scoring rules weren't decided on all at once. They evolved over the years. At the outset, football was played according to whatever rules the two teams agreed to.

The first rules meeting was in 1876. Before this, there was no standard ruleset for the sport of football. Initially, it was the students at Rutgers, Princeton, Yale, and Harvard who created rules that varied from a strictly kicking game to a game that allowed running the ball. The first ruleset, created in Princeton in 1871, included these rules related to scoring: Games are played to to 4 of 7 goals (best of 7) No player shall toss or carry the ball Goalposts were 25 feet apart (kicking the ball through the goal posts was the only way to score) Harvard drafted their own ruleset in 1872, based off of the Princeton/Rutgers rules. Theirs was closer to rugby, due to their Canadian connection with McGill University. Theirs allowed running and throwing: No player may run with the ball unless pursued by an opponent, and only then so long as pursued No player may pass or throw the ball unless pursued by an opponent Scoring was still only by kicking through the goalposts Yale created a ruleset very similar to Princeton's, prohibiting picking up, throwing, or carrying the ball.

In 1873, Princeton, Rutgers, and Yale met to organize a standard ruleset. The outcome was a set of 12 rules. Out of those, these related to scoring: Games are to 6 goals. Goals are scored by the ball passing between the goal posts. No player shall throw or carry the ball. In 1876, Princeton, Yale, Columbia, and Harvard met to further unify the rulesets (Harvard had not attended the previous meeting due to their commitment to a running/Rugby style of game). The outcome was 61 rules. Here is how they related to scoring: The rules defined punts, placekicks, and dropkicks Goalposts now were based on top of a crossbar 10 feet from the ground Goals are scored by any kick other than a punt that goes through the goalposts Matches are decided on a majority of touchdowns (touchdowns had a different meaning than today) A goal equals 4 touchdowns A touchdown is when a player on the ball on the ground in touch or in goal so that the ball is dead Players may run. If a player runs with the ball across the goal line and touches it down, it is called a run in.

Backward throws were allowed. After a touchdown, the ball is brought out for an attempt at a goal (just like the extra point today) In these rules, the safety was not explicitly stated but it was called a touch-in-goal. A team that has touched down the ball in their own goal were to immediately kick it away. These did not count against the team. In 1881, the safety was officially included in the rules, and counted against the team, but only in a tie-break situation: In case of a tie, [play more]. If the game still remains a tie, the side which makes four or more safeties less than their opponent shall win the game. In 1882, safeties became part of the scoring, and the tie-break advantage switched from kicks to touchdowns: Four touchdowns takes precedence over a goal from the field (which is worth four touchdowns) Two safeties equals one touchdown This was all part of an overall strategy to increase the pace of the game and eliminate stalling that occurred under the previous rules. Downs were also added at this time.

In early 1883, scores were first attached to the various ways of scoring: Safety: 1 point Goal after touchdown: 4 points Goal from the field: 5 points Later in 1883, scores were further amended: Safety: 2 points Goal after touchdown: 4 points Goal from the field: 5 points In 1887, scores became: answered Dec 28 '12 at 22:05 user647 up vote 2 down vote The evolution of the scoring system in American Football is described in and other nearby articles. The game evolved from Rugby Union, and at the time, the scoring just counted goals (rugby having evolved from association football just a short time earlier, where this system is obviously still in place). Reaching the end zone merely gave you a chance to kick at the goal. Over time, both American football and rugby tweaked the scoring system to put more emphasis on reaching the end zone versus the kicking game. The reason they arrived at these particular numbers was obviously just a long series of tweaking until the administrators arrived at a balance that they liked. For the same reason, numerous other rules are tweaked every year.

Beginner's Guide to Fantasy Football Beginner's Guide to Fantasy Football Section III: Scoring Variations and How They Influence Fantasy Football Posted 6/16 by Chris Smith, Exclusive to Footballguys.com "Success always comes when preparation meets opportunity." - Henry Hartman One of the most essential aspects of fantasy football is to understand your league's scoring rules inside and out. The different nuances of scoring from one league to the next can make a big difference in which players you should (a) target in your fantasy drafts and (b) start in certain weeks. In reality, there are thousands of different scoring variations that can show up in fantasy football that can have an effect on your roster but this section will break down the most obvious differences and give you an idea what to look for when scouring your own scoring rules. While there are almost an unlimited number of different scoring rules you can use in fantasy football, there are two main branches to deal with. Performance Scoring This is the most common amongst fantasy leagues. It rewards points for both touchdowns and yardage gained.

For example, if a running back gains 120 yards rushing, 30 yards receiving and scores one touchdown, he could total 21 points in one league (1 pt every ten rushing/receiving yards + 6 pts per touchdown), 11 points in another league (1 pt every 25 rushing/receiving yards + 6 points per touchdown) and 31 points in a different league (1 pt every ten rushing/receiving yards + 6 pts per touchdown + 10 bonus points for a hundred yard rushing game). There truly are countless different ways these leagues can be set up. The important thing to remember as a fantasy owner is to take the time to really scrutinize your scoring system and change your drafting style to reflect those rules.

Examples of different styles of performance scoring League A 1 point every 10 yards rushing 1 point every 10 yards receiving 1 point every 25 yards passing 4 points for each touchdown pass 6 points for each touchdown run -1 point for each interception 1 point for each extra point 3 points for each field goal League B 1 point every 10 yards rushing/receiving 1 point every 10 yards passing 6 points for each touchdown pass 6 points for each touchdown run 1 point for each extra point 3 points for each field goal 5 bonus points for each 100-yard rushing/receiving game 5 bonus points for each 300-yard passing game 2 bonus points for each field goal over 50 yards League C 1 point every 10 yards rushing 1 point every 10 yards receiving 1 point for each reception 1 point every 50 yards passing 4 points for each passing touchdown 6 points for each rushing touchdown -2 points for each interception 1 point for each extra point 3 points for each field goal Comparing the three leagues above Each of these leagues should influence the way you go about your fantasy draft.

In League A, quarterbacks, running back and receivers are all giving pretty even billing. The scoring in that first league is about as standard as it comes and the value for each position should be easy to determine. In League B, bonuses are rewarded to players who achieve certain objectives such as 100-yard rushing games and 300-yard passing games. That makes players such as Tiki Barber, Marvin Harrison and Peyton Manning that much more attractive than in other leagues. In addition, quarterbacks in this league are huge point scorers with the 1 pt every 10 passing yards and 6 points per touchdown. It makes more sense in this type of system to target a quarterback like Peyton Manning in round one whereas you may typically hold off until later in the draft to pick a quarterback. In League C, running backs and receivers have much more value than the quarterbacks do. Not only are quarterbacks really devalued with the 1 point every 50 passing yards in addition to losing 2 points for each interception but the extra point per reception really places value on pass-catching running backs and receivers. In this kind of league, it would make sense to target both running backs and receivers early and pick up a serviceable quarterback much later in the draft.

Examples of scoring from all three leagues QB Peyton Manning: 370 passing yards / 4 TD passes / 1 INT / 42 rushing yards League One - 34.0 fantasy points League Two - 70.2 fantasy points League Three - 25.6 fantasy points RB LaDainian Tomlinson: 162 rushing yards / 6 receptions for 45 receiving yards / 2 touchdowns League One - 32.7 fantasy points League Two - 37.7 fantasy points League Three - 38.7 fantasy points WR Randy Moss: 11 receptions for 120 receiving yards and 1 touchdown League One - 18 fantasy points League Two - 23 fantasy points League Three - 29 fantasy points TD-Only Scoring This is a very basic, easy to understand league. The only thing that counts for points to a fantasy owner is touchdowns, field goals and extra points. In a league such as this, a running back such as Jerome Bettis and TJ Duckett can end up being worth more than a runner like Ahman Green and Clinton Portis.

In these kinds of leagues, it doesn't matter if a running back explodes for 250 yards rushing in one game. All that matters is if he can score touchdowns. For example, T.J. Duckett ranked 17th among running back in this kind of league last season despite rushing for only 509 yards. "Before everything else, getting ready is the secret to success." - Henry Ford In Conclusion With the countless different types of scoring available in fantasy football, what is important as a fantasy owner is to not only know your scoring rules but to scrutinize them well and have a game plan heading into your draft. Knowing why Player A is a better option for your squad than Player B based on your scoring rules puts you ahead of many potential owners in your leagues.

NFL Records Jerry Rice, San Francisco, 1985-2000; Oakland, 2001-04; Seattle, 2004 (10-r, 197-p, 1-ret) 175 Emmitt Smith, Dallas, 1990-2002; Arizona, 2003-04 (164-r, 11-p) 145 Marcus Allen, L.A. Raiders, 1982-1992; Kansas City, 1993-97 (123-r, 21-p, 1-ret) Most Touchdowns, Season LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego, 2006 28 Shaun Alexander, Seattle, 2005 (27-r, 1-p) 27 Priest Holmes, Kansas City, 2003 (27-r) Most Touchdowns, Rookie, Season Gale Sayers, Chicago, 1965 (14-r, 6-p, 2-ret) 20 Eric Dickerson, L.A.

Rams, 1983 (18-r, 2-p) 17 Randy Moss, Minnesota, 1998 (17-p) Fred Taylor, Jacksonville, 1998 (14-r, 3-p) Edgerrin James, Indianapolis, 1999 (13-r, 4-p) Clinton Portis, Denver, 2002 (15-r, 2-p) Most Touchdowns, Game Ernie Nevers, Chi. Cardinals vs. Chi. Bears, Nov. 28, 1929 (6-r) Dub Jones, Cleveland vs. Chi. Bears, Nov. 25, 1951 (4-r, 2-p) Gale Sayers, Chicago vs. San Francisco, Dec. 12, 1965 (4-r, 1-p, 1-ret) 5 Bob Shaw, Chi. Cardinals vs. Baltimore, Oct. 2, 1950 (5-p) Jim Brown, Cleveland vs. Baltimore, Nov. 1, 1959 (5-r) Abner Haynes, Dall. Texans vs.

Oakland, Nov. 26, 1961 (4-r, 1-p) Billy Cannon, Houston vs. N.Y. Titans, Dec. 10, 1961 (3-r, 2-p) Cookie Gilchrist, Buffalo vs. N.Y. Jets, Dec. 8, 1963 (5-r) Paul Hornung, Green Bay vs. Baltimore, Dec. 12, 1965 (3-r, 2-p) Kellen Winslow, San Diego vs. Oakland, Nov. 22, 1981 (5-p) Jerry Rice, San Francisco vs. Atlanta, Oct. 14, 1990 (5-p) James Stewart, Jacksonville vs. Philadelphia, Oct. 12, 1997 (5-r) Shaun Alexander, Seattle vs. Minnesota, Sept. 29, 2002 (4-r, 1-p) Clinton Portis, Denver vs. Kansas City, Dec. 7, 2003 (5-r) 4 By many players. Last time: Randy Moss, New England vs. Buffalo, Nov.

18, 2007 (4-p) Terrell Owens, Dallas vs. Washington, Nov. 18, 2007 (4-p) Most Consecutive Games Scoring Touchdowns 18 LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego, 2004-05 14

Question: In American Football, how many points does a touchdown score?
Answer: SIX